This drink is the perfect blend of tart and sweet with a whiskey kick, and is the most amazing cocktail for fall! Whiskey cocktails are always fun, and with blood oranges, this one is perfect for Halloween and other holidays.
This is one of my Drink recipes I know you’ll want to keep on hand!
We’re big whiskey and bourbon lovers here in The Chunky Chef household, and while my husband prefers his whiskey neat, I prefer mine in a cocktail.
This fun drink is a perfect blend of sweet and tart, with a smooth smoky warmth from the whiskey.
So if you’re looking for the perfect way to unwind after a long day, a drink to sip while you sit around the fire outside, or a fabulous cocktail for a party… this blood orange whiskey cocktail is the drink you’re looking for!
Plus there are plenty of ways to change this recipe up if you’d like, and I’ve included a large batch version in the “chef tips” right below the recipe instructions, in case you’re having a party and/or don’t want to make just 2 cocktails at a time.
What do I need to make this recipe?
- Blood oranges – blood oranges look mysterious, but you can find them in most grocery stores.
- Whiskey – this is the base of the drink, warm and smoky in flavor.
- Simple syrup – this is purely for sweetness, to counteract the acidity and bite from the alcohol. Simple syrup can be bought, or made (check out the “variations of this recipe” heading below for more info on making your own.
- Lemons – I highly recommend using fresh lemons to get the lemon juice for this recipe.
- Lime juice – just as with the lemons, I do recommend using fresh limes (I had just run out before this photo, so they’re not pictured).
How to make blood orange whiskey cocktails:
This is just an overview; the full ingredients and directions are in the recipe card toward the bottom of this post.
- Add ice to a cocktail shaker.
- Juice oranges. Fresh blood orange juice is hard to replicate, so I do highly recommend using fresh blood oranges.
- Add lemon juice. Fresh is best.
- Add lime juice. Fresh is best.
- Add whiskey.
- Add simple syrup and shake. It doesn’t take long, just shake for about 15-20 seconds.
- Strain into glass. I like to serve this in rocks or double old fashioned glasses.
- Garnish and serve.
Helpful Tip!
Garnishes (like the blood orange slices and rosemary) are always optional, but with drinks they add such a fun and bar/restaurant-style look, so I do recommend using them.
Variations of this recipe
- Whiskey – there’s no need to break the bank on a bottle of whiskey for this cocktail recipe, since it’s mixed with other bold flavors. We typically use Gentleman Jack, but please use your favorite.
- Simple syrup – this is sold in the cocktail aisle where they sell bitters and other mixers, or you can make your own. Just combine equal parts water and granulated sugar in a saucepan and bringing it to a low boil. Boil until all the sugar has dissolved, then cool and use.
- Blood oranges – juicing fresh blood oranges will give you the best flavor, but if you’re in a pinch, you could use bottled juice. However, my local grocery store doesn’t carry bottled blood orange juice, so it might be something that would be hard to get your hands on.
- Citrus juice – as mentioned above, fresh lemon and lime juice is highly recommended, but if all you have available, you can use bottled lemon and lime juice. Just know that it will alter the flavor a bit.
- Sugared rim – I love to add fun little flairs to simple recipes like this, and a sugared rim is a great addition! You can use granulated sugar or be a little extra and use a sanding sugar (I love to use a black sugar for Halloween parties). Add some of the sugar to a plate. Run a bit of water, simple syrup, or an orange wedge around the rim of the glass, then dip the rim in the sugar.
FAQ’s
This recipe is very easy to scale up; just figure out how many drinks you’ll want, and multiply the ingredient amounts by that number. So for example, if you wanted 8 drinks, you’d need to multiply all ingredients by 4 (16 oz blood orange juice, etc). For more info, please see the “chef tips” section of the recipe below.
If you’re not a huge fan of whiskey, I’d encourage you to give it a try as is first, since I don’t consider this a very “whiskey forward” cocktail. The other flavors help mask the sharp whiskey flavor. However, if you absolutely can’t stand whiskey, you could try using a different liquor (such as scotch, or even clear liquors like vodka or white rum). Just know that I haven’t tested this recipe with any other liquor, so I can’t speak to how it will taste if you deviate from the recipe.
Making a whiskey cocktail ahead of time
If you’d like, feel free to make this drink up to 24 hours ahead of time!
Just keep it covered in a pitcher or jar in the refrigerator. When ready to serve, add it to a cocktail shaker with some ice and give it a good shaking.
Pour over ice in the serving glasses, top with garnishes, then serve.
Storage
Any leftover cocktails should be stored in the refrigerator and enjoyed within 1-2 days.
You’ll want to fill a cocktail shaker with ice and give the leftover cocktail a quick shake to mix it all back up before serving.
More Halloween Cocktail Recipes:
My Favorite Cocktail Shaker!
This shaker comes with a jigger and mixing spoon, and is a large 24 oz size! Plus, it’s a pretty inexpensive set which has held up really well over the years.
Did you make this? Be sure to leave a review below and tag me @the_chunky_chef on Facebook and Instagram!
Ingredients
- 4 oz blood orange juice (about 1/2 cup) freshly squeezed is best
- 3 oz whiskey (about 1/4 cup + 2 Tbsp)
- 2 oz lemon juice (about 1/4 cup) freshly squeezed is best
- 2 oz simple syrup (about 1/4 cup)
- 1 oz lime juice (about 2 Tbsp) freshly squeezed
- blood orange slices for garnish
- rosemary sprigs for garnish
Instructions
Make drinks
- To a cocktail shaker, add some ice, then the blood orange juice, whiskey, simple syrup, lemon juice, and lime juice.
- Cover and shake well, for about 15 – 20 seconds.
Serve
- Add additional ice to two glasses, then strain the cocktails from the cocktail shaker, dividing the contents evenly between the two glasses.
- Garnish as desired and serve cold.
Want to save this recipe for later? Click the heart in the bottom right corner to save to your own recipe box!
Chef Tips
- This recipe makes 2 (6 oz each) cocktails, but is easily scaled up to make a larger amount.
- Instead of shaking the cocktail, you can stir it with ice and a long cocktail spoon before pouring it into the glasses.
Larger Batch:
- This recipe is very easy to scale up; just figure out how many drinks you’ll want, divide it by 2 (the number of servings this makes), and multiply the ingredient amounts by that number.
- So for example, let’s say you wanted 8 drinks. 8 divided by 2 is 4, so you’d need to multiply all ingredient amounts by 4 – 16 oz blood orange juice, 12 oz whiskey, 8 oz simple syrup, 8 oz lemon juice, and 4 oz lime juice.
- For a party, you may not want to use the cocktail shaker for each drink (since that takes some time). So you can add the the drink ingredients to a large pitcher. Stir well, cover, and refrigerate for several hours (until well chilled). Then stir, pour into glasses, add garnishes and serve.
- Or if you’d still like to use the cocktail shaker (it does make a great presentation!), still combine everything in the pitcher and chill it, but pour some from the pitcher into an ice-filled cocktail shaker and shake up the individual drinks (just make sure you give the contents of the pitcher a good stir before pouring it into the cocktail shaker).
Nutrition Disclaimer
The Chunky Chef is not a dietician or nutritionist, and any nutritional information shared is an estimate. If calorie count and other nutritional values are important to you, we recommend running the ingredients through whichever online nutritional calculator you prefer. Calories can vary quite a bit depending on which brands were used.
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